


Twilight Befalls Us

by CaptainCassidy



Series: Dark Guardians-verse [1]
Category: Legend of Spyro
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2020-05-23
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:15:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24336478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainCassidy/pseuds/CaptainCassidy
Summary: Cera can see into the Pool of Visions.
Series: Dark Guardians-verse [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1756948





	Twilight Befalls Us

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to listen to this while you read: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3dXnyQjnx8  
> I had it linked in the original post.

Water trickling off the rocks nearby left an idle melody floating along the breeze, misty stars reflected in the flowing river beside the old cavern. Moss grew around its open maw, sparkling faintly in the light of the two moons. The largest yawned over the land, as if protecting it and wishing it well, while the other held steadfast far behind, watching the stars far beyond. Chirps and chimes could be heard about the surrounding forest, creating a soothing melody to aid the gentle dance of the trees in the wind.

This place had been untouched for many years, and in a sense, still remained so. Those who tread here were few and far between, and careful not to upset the delicate balance of nature, often resting atop the glistening waterfall to overlook the forest and the Celestial Moons, who would be glad to watch them in turn. In recent times, however, few saw this beautiful place, instead favoring their cities and temples, regaining all that had been lost after so many years of war.

Twilight Falls had made for a perfect home after all that had happened. Cyan eyes rested upon old and worn tomes, scanning their contents and committing them to memory. The cavern walls were lined with things similar, as well as many trinkets and wind chimes, giving it a calm, mystical feel. Much of what resided here were gifts from great dragons; The Guardians, her parents, and leaders of Warfang. Several medals also rested upon the shelves, the elemental symbol for wind engraved into most.

Cera’s eyes drew up from their literary banquet, head turning slightly so that she might look to the entrance of her home. The faint sounds of the forest and river could be heard, as well as the occasional ringing from her chimes, but no other sounds met her ears. Her world, for now, appeared at peace with itself. Yet, her eyes drifted closed once more, as if in deep thought.

Memories of her family returned to her. Moments in her life when she was happy, frightened, curious, and finally, resolved. They flitted about her head for a few moments, each one bringing a bittersweet tang to her pallet. These memories were things she would treasure, yet many had come to weigh heavily upon her soul.

That had been the reason she had come out here. The reason she had decided that her Warfang would no longer be her home, that it could no longer sustain her or her brothers. All of them had grown far beyond it, to both the pride and sorrow of their parents.

And yet, she knew this is not what they would have wanted.

The look of agony in their eyes when forced to banish her youngest brother was something she would never forget. Her mother’s tears, her father’s scorn-- the dragons and moles that had stood before him and turned their heads to the horizon, willing him away as if he were little more than a bothersome insect. She had been silent that day, and many days since.

Cera hadn’t said that she was leaving. Then again, she never had to. Familiar cyan eyes had understood with only a mere glance, and her father’s attempts to follow after her had been squandered by a bladed tail. Though she knew it had hurt them, in the end, they understood why she had chosen to leave. And yet, now, they were only left with one child.

The tome was closed with careful claws, her lean body straining to stand after having been resting for so long. With a wistful gesture her reading material was returned to its proper place, resting among its own kind once again. The task was brief but refreshing, reminding her that there were still things to be done.

Even after so many years, their world was still being pieced back together. The devastation of war was still fresh in the minds of the older, those who had lived to see its troubling times. Many still feared its return, despite the spirits she knew kept the true threat sealed deep within the earth. It was this fear that had pushed so many to shun what they did not understand, and despise what they could not control.

She understood their worries. Their reasoning was sound. These things did not quell the ache in her heart, nor relieve the tiredness in her eyes, many years beyond their owner. They were little more than false comforts, trying to lull her back into a sense of belonging that simply no longer existed.

Silver claws rested atop an ancient tome, one depicting the wind elemental symbol on its cover. It was well-worn and clearly loved, yet it brought nothing but more bitter memories. The book had been a gift from her mother, many years ago, when she had come of age. The text within was sacred, and only those most experienced in their element were given such an honor. Her mother’s mentor had passed it down to her, and then it had been Cera’s turn to receive it.

She had studied it with her mother for many years. There had been so much to learn about the wind that, at one time, she had feared she may not be able to master it. Yet whenever she felt this, ashen claws would come to rest on her shoulder, a gentle smile to remind her that nothing was impossible. And every time she would train harder, study until she passed out, and question whatever she could.

Then the day had come when she had gotten so far that the other Guardians recognized her abilities. They had spoken to each other for some time before her mother had returned to her, a calm smile belaying the light in her eyes.

“We have decided,” her voice did not shake, though it seemed a miracle, “that you are worthy of becoming my true apprentice, Cera.”

“What does that mean, mom?” she knew, but had never thought this day would come.

“It means,” a deep breath was taken to steady herself, “that you would be next in line for Guardianship of the wind element.”

Cera had refused to give an answer that day. Her head bowed and standing before the Guardians, she requested time to think. Time to collect herself, to truly process what had been asked of her. Though it was of the highest honor, it did not feel right to answer so suddenly.

Days passed. Nights twinkled by. No answer came, and the young dragoness did not exit her chambers. Soon her family began to worry, and on the eve of the tenth day, the young protégée finally offered them what they had desired for so long.

“I will not accept.”

“But Cera--” Volteer had been first to speak, utter shock lacing his already upbeat voice. He was not allowed to finish, as her mother raised a claw to silence him.

“Why, my dear?” her eyes filled with worry, perhaps assuming her child doubted herself even still.

“My brother excels in his element. I know he will soon be offered apprenticeship in fire. He is far more suited to be a Guardian, and it would be unfair for both of us to be allowed such an honor.”

Silence gripped them for some time before Terrador had turned to her mother, giving a nod of understanding. The darker dragoness hid her emotions from him and the rest, but nodded in return. Cera knew this is what she had wanted, and now it was being denied. Still, her mother knew she could not be forced. Wind was not the sturdiest element, but it could not be bent to the will of others, either. It did as it pleased, twisting and weaving within the air of its own accord.

In many ways, she took after her mother.

“If that is your choice,” her head bowed, the crown of silver horns glistening in the waning light.

She had not been wrong. Only months later was her brother being considered for an apprenticeship in his element, and Cera knew he would do well. He was powerful and gentle, kindhearted and strong, all of the traits necessary for a future fire Guardian. It was where he deserved to be, where he truly belonged.

Cera never did tell her family where her prediction had come from. Much like she had her whole life, the young dragoness had simply kept quiet, watching from the sidelines and providing aid only when it was necessary. Her brothers had their own lives to lead, and she had known since she was young that she played little part in them.

The Pool of Visions had been quite clear. Burst would rise like a phoenix out of ash, his calm and steady claws able to protect and train all those who sought him out. He was so much like his father, for better or for worse. The road he walked was paved in a gentle glow of fire, fledglings at either side of him looking up to him for his guiding light. It was a path she knew had been walked before, one that her father’s mentor had committed to long before the tides of war.

Her reminiscing led her out of her cavern, wind chimes ringing as she exited its moss-covered maw. The moons were high, each star twinkling just as brightly in the sky as they did the water. Its current made ripples upon the surface, ones that distorted her reflection as she looked into it. The disturbance made it seem as if there were another looking back at her.

It had been several years since he had been banished, yet the memory was still fresh in her mind. The anguish of her parents, the fury of her brother, the scorn of the onlookers. Their collective gaze had frozen him in place, cyan eyes so unlike her own wide with a fear not of his element. He had stepped back, shaken his head, before lashing out, scolding them for their narrow minds and trying desperately to explain what he had been doing; that his actions were not of treason.

His words fell on deaf ears, their scorn pushing him back from his home and into the horizon beyond. Each of his claims became more ludicrous than the last, theories that the darkness that once possessed the lands could be harnessed to further advance their kind.

With every word the crowd rebelled. With every claim, the light in their father’s eyes had dulled. Who knew better than their own parents what such a power could do? Yet their teachings had not reached their youngest son, and his evil eyes had become wild and unpredictable. His scales darkened, and finally, he was pushed over the walls of Warfang and into the wilds outside.

He had flown up, up, up, so high that her eyes could not follow him, and finally, off towards the mountains so far in the distance that they appeared as mere anthills. She knew what his intentions had been-- deep down, they all had-- and yet the power their parents had tried so hard to seal away had reached into their youngest child, clutching his heart between its icy claws.

The cool waters before her continued to flow idly onward, a faint thunder of the waterfall deeper in the forest keeping the melody of the land steadfast. Though the stars on the water shined over her scales, they did not reach her eyes, which seemed dull and tired after so long away from home. Their attempts to cheer her up were swept away with the wind, gently swaying the trees as it passed by.

She had no place in their lives, and that, perhaps, she could have understood. What truly vexed her, what kept her from returning home, was why the Pool of Visions had shown her nothing of her future.

As if she were not meant to have one.


End file.
